New and modified fuels are being investigated for both their abilities to efficiently and effectively provide energy, while at the same time lowering the cost of acquiring and utilizing the fuel. Obviously, fuel that is provided from renewable or consistent resources will be the most cost efficient option in the long-term, but the fuel should be accessible and relatively easy to use from the standpoint that it is clean fuel which is provided in its usable form.
One process that uses fuel is the synthesis of ammonia. A Kellogg Reforming System or Kellogg Primary Reformer, as shown in Prior Art FIG. 1, can be utilized in the formation of ammonia. The Kellogg Reformer (100) uses natural gas as a fuel source for the process and a combination of natural gas and steam as reactants during the process. While natural gas is a cleaner burning fuel that other fuel sources, it can be expensive to acquire and utilize on a regular basis. As shown in Prior Art FIG. 1, fuel (110) and a combination of natural gas and steam (120) is introduced into the primary reformer (130), which contains a plurality of catalyst tubes (140). Flue gas (150) exits from the primary reformer (130), while at the same time, fuel (160) for the secondary reformer (170) travels from the primary reformer (130) into the secondary reformer (170) and is mixed with air (180). Reformed gas (190) then exits the secondary reformer (170).
In addition, natural gas primarily comes from the breakdown of fossils in the earth's crust, which is obviously neither a renewable or consistent resource. Other sources of natural gas are so-called “unconventional” resources, which includes “deep natural gas”, “tight natural gas”, “Devonian shale gas”, “coalbed methane”, “geopressurized zones” and “methane hydrates”. All of these sources are considered “unconventional”, because they are either difficult to reach or extract or not certain to produce large quantities of natural gas.
Therefore, it would be ideal to find a more cost-efficient fuel source which can displace at least part of the natural gas required for the process to run. In addition to being cost-efficient, ideal fuels and fuel sources should be a) renewable and/or a consistent resource (e.g. biogenic fuels), b) easy to use, c) easy to transport and d) relatively “clean” with respect to the amount of time/resources it requires to convert the fuel to a “useable” form.